Secrets From an Identity Thief

• Watch your back. In line at the supermarket, I’ll hold my phone like I’m looking at the screen and photograph your card as you’re using it. Next thing you know, I’m ordering things online—on your money.
• Those letters and newspapers piling up at your door tells that you are away. And there could be card numbers and  bank numbers I can use. 
• Check your bank and credit card balances at least once a week. I can do a lot of damage in the 30 days between statements.
• In Europe, credit cards have an embedded chip and require a PIN, which makes them a lot harder to hack. Not here,  and so I can duplicate the magnetic stripe technology with a cheap machine.
• If a bill doesn’t show up when it’s supposed to, don’t breathe a sigh of relief. Start to wonder if your mail has been stolen.
• You throw away the darnedest things—pre-approved credit card applications, old bills, expired credit cards, bank deposit slips, and crumpled-up job or loan applications with all your personal information.
• If you see something that looks like it doesn’t belong on the ATM or sticks out from the card slot, walk away. That’s the skimmer I attached to capture your card information and PIN.
• Why don’t more of you  call your bank to stop banks from sending you preapproved credit offers? You’re making it way too easy for me.
• I use your credit cards all the time, and they never check your signature. You will give me a lot of trouble if your credit card has your picture on it.
• I also love it if you have a debit card that does not require a PIN when you buy something from a shop. You know, it’s secure only at the ATM.
• I can call the cellphone service provider, pose as you, and say, “Hey, I thought I paid this bill. I can’t remember—did I use my Visa or MasterCard? Can you read me back that number?” It’s unbelievable how much they’ll tell me.
• Thanks for using your debit card instead of your credit card. Hackers are constantly breaking into retail databases, and debit cards give me direct access to your bank account. (Why, if you used only a credit card you could contest the charge and refuse to pay up.)
• I love that new credit card that the courier boy left at your door. I write down the numbers and put it back. Then your card is as good as mine.